Recently in Parks Category

Source: Jenni Spinner, Public Works, Vol. 141 no. 7, June 2010

Budget shortfalls are nothing new to public agencies, and they're all too familiar to Michigan's Genesee County Parks and Recreation Commission (GCPRC).

McMillan called her team together for a brainstorming session, encouraging employees at every level to spout out ideas that would save just $10 a year. The group started the session with the aim of creating 60 ideas in 60 minutes. But when their hour was up, they'd generated 80 ideas, ranging from reducing the frequency of mowings in some areas, using e-mail rather than the U.S. Postal Service to share information, and letting field employees wear their own jeans rather than agency-purchased uniform pants.

A number of the ideas were put in place that, combined, were expected to save $40,000 over one year. Instead, they saved four times that: $167,000.

The following measures have been taken as result of the cost-cutting ideas generated by the staff of Genesee County Parks.

Source: Land & Water Conservation Fund Coalition, 2009

The LWCF is the principal source of funds to purchase land for national parks, national wildlife refuges, national forests, and other federal areas. The program has helped protect some of America's most treasured assets including Grand Canyon National Park, the Appalachian National Scenic Trail, White Mountain National Forest, and portions of America's first national wildlife refuge, Pelican Island.

Despite LWCF's strong track record of success over the past 44 years, the program faces enormous challenges. Lands with significant historic, cultural, and wildlife values are rapidly being converted to other uses. Factors that are responsible for this trend include increasing land values, population growth, and the development of the rural-urban fringe. Yet, in the face of escalating development pressures, funding for the LWCF has declined precipitously in the past seven years. Authorized at $900 million annually, this level has been met only once. The recorded balance in offshore oil revenues credited to, but not appropriated from, the LWCF is approaching $17 billion. LWCF funding for federal land acquisition has dropped from $445 million in Fiscal Year 2001 to $130 million in Fiscal Year 2008.

Source: Peter Harnik and Coleen Gentles, Parks & Recreation, May 2009

From the summary:
With a unique language, culture, and style, skateboarders are riding an urban tide that is yielding scores of skate parks and adding a new layer of excitement and challenge to city recreation systems, but it's a layer that isn't fully integrated into them. According to the City Park Facts survey, conducted by the Center for City Park Excellence, there are only 180 skate parks in the 75 most populous U.S. cities. On a per capita basis, only nine municipalities have more than one skateboard park per 100,000 residents -- a sign that cities are far from accepting skateboarding as a mainstream recreational offering. In an article that appeared in the May 2009 issue of Parks & Recreation, the Center looks into where and how park agencies are creating skate parks. A pdf of the article can be downloaded below.

Source Public Works, 2009

Almost 20% of the $787 billion American Recovery and Reinvestment Act will be spent on improving the nation's infrastructure.The editors of Public Works have assembled a sector-by-sector guide to how much is available and under what conditions. The site includes: News & updates, Fleet services, Public grounds and facilities, Solid waste, Streets, roads, and bridges, Technology and equipment, Water, wastewater, and stormwater, and Other resources.

Source: Trust for Public Land, April 2009
(registration required)

From the summary:
The Trust for Public Land's Center for City Park Excellence gathered two dozen park experts and economists in Philadelphia for a colloquium to analyze how park systems economically benefit cities. While not every benefit can be easily quantified, this report examines seven major factors:
* Property value
* Tourism
* Direct use
* Health
* Community cohesion
* Clean water
* Clean air

While the science of city park economics is still in its infancy, TPL has worked to carefully consider and analyze these values. After describing the value factor and the rationale for calculating it, this report provides real-life example of the mathematical outcomes, based on the first five test cases undertaken in this program--the cities of Washington, D.C., San Diego, Boston, Sacramento, and Philadelphia.

Source: Trust for Public Land, July 2009
(registration required)

From the summary:
Conservation: An Investment That Pays--like TPL's other reports on the economic benefits of parks and conservation--is intended to help agency personnel and community conservationists make the case for conservation as a long-term economic investment. Too often, we still hear the argument that creating parks and conserving land is too expensive, especially in hard economic times. We hope that the research and many examples cited in the report will help you to promote conservation for its many benefits, including the boost parks and open space can give to a community's bottom line.

Source: Trust for Public Land, 2009
(registration required)

From the press release:
The 77 largest city park systems nationwide provide more than 1.3 million acres of parkland, providing close-to-home outdoor experiences in an ailing economy, according to a new report released today by The Trust for Public Land (TPL). The 77 cities added more than 5,000 acres of parkland as the public turns to local parks in a time when fewer people have money to travel.

The public amenities offer a variety of facilities available to everyone. Big-city park departments last year offered 56 million urban residents 10,419 park playgrounds, 1,290 swimming pools, 466 dog parks, and 386 public golf courses, while spending $5.7 billion on their park and recreation systems.

See also:
Complete list of city parkland, facilities, and budgets

Source: National Geographic, 2009

The U.S. National Park Service preserves 390 parks, historic sites, memorials, and recreation areas that attract nearly 300 million visits every year. There are 58 national parks in the system, as varied as the country that houses them. Yellowstone thrills visitors with its explosive grandeur, Acadia charms with its carriage roads. The giant wonders of Sequoia, the Everglades' "river of grass," the natural skyscrapers of Arches, the frozen beauty of Wrangell-St. Elias--to experience them all would take a lifetime.
See also:
The National Parks: America's Best Idea
Source: PBS, September 2009

Source: U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service, February 2009

From the press release:
Department of the Interior Secretary Ken Salazar announced today more than $740.9 million will be distributed to the fish and wildlife agencies of the 50 states, commonwealths, the District of Columbia, and territories to fund fish and wildlife conservation, boater access to public waters, and hunter and aquatic education. These Wildlife and Sport Fish Restoration Program funds come from excise taxes and import duties on sporting firearms, ammunition, archery equipment, sportfishing equipment, electric outboard motors, and fuel taxes attributable to motorboats and small engines.

Source: Public Performance Measurement and Reporting Network, February 2009

The goal of the Public Performance Measurement and Reporting Network is to promote the use of valid, reliable data as a key element in improving the delivery of public services. In support of the Network, the National Center for Public Performance has implemented a series of initiatives: a comprehensive and continuously updated database of publications and cases; national conferences and workshops; publications of measurement-based books and articles; an Online Public Performance Measurement Certificate; and a monthly e-newsletter.

The communities are as follows: 311, Public Health, Municipal Performance, Nonprofit, Parks, Libraries, Transit, Education.